GoodWalk Thailand: Designing “Walkable City” Revitalizing the Economy, Enhancing Quality of Life for City Dwellers

Chula joins hands with the Thai Health Promotion Foundation (ThaiHealth) to design “Walkable City” using the GoodWalk Score as the criteria for selecting the pilot area to be developed as Walkable City in Bangkok as well as many cities around the country. The plan is to help reduce pollution, revitalize tourism, and the local economy while enhancing the quality of life and health for city dwellers.

Study Details Toxic Elements Found in Stranded Whales, Dolphins Over 15 Years

Researchers evaluated the prevalence, concentration and tissue distribution of essential and non-essential trace elements, including heavy metal toxicants in tissue (blubber, kidney, liver, skeletal muscle, skin) and fecal samples. Findings reveal how toxicant levels relate to their sex, breed, age and other demographic factors.

First certified carbon-negative beef production opens doors to emerging agricultural technologies, says Notre Dame expert

Argentina, one of the premier beef producers in the world, has set a precedent for livestock farmers by certifying the first carbon-negative beef — opening the doors for a number of emerging technologies that have the potential to reduce methane emissions from…

GW Experts Available: EPA Strengthens Rule on Harmful Soot Pollution

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is strengthening limits on soot, a harmful air pollution in which studies have shown that fine particles kill thousands of Americans every year. According to The Washington Post, the stricter standards could prevent thousands of premature…

UC Irvine-led study links long-term air pollution exposure to postpartum depression in SoCal

Irvine, Calif., Oct. 31, 2023 — Long-term maternal exposure to common air pollutants, both before and after childbirth, has been linked to increased risk of postpartum depression for mothers – with symptoms ranging from anxiety and irritability to suicide – and may lead to cognitive, emotional, psychological and behavioral impairments in their infants, according to research led by the University of California, Irvine.

The Smart Suit that Saves Forest Fires Firefighters’ Lives – An International Award-Winning Design by Chula’s Engineering Students

Students of the Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University have been awarded an MGA Award in recognition of their innovative design for their fire-resistant Smart Suit which uses IoT technology for connections and online activations to store data therefore reducing the risks and increasing the safety for firefighters at work in real time.

UC Irvine launches climate action innovation hub with $1 million state grant

Irvine, Calif., Sept. 14, 2023 — The State of California, through the University of California Office of Research and Innovation, has granted $1 million to the University of California, Irvine for the establishment of a broad, collaborative initiative to accelerate the growth of companies focused on climate goals.

GW Experts Available: Japan releasing treated water from Fukushima nuclear plant

Japan started discharging treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean. According to The Washington Post, the move comes amid fierce opposition from neighboring countries and after a two-year review by the International Atomic Energy Agency,…

‘Coastal Squeeze:’ Massive Loss of U.S. Coastline Tidal Flats Over 31 Years

The entire contiguous U.S. has experienced massive urban expansions and the Atlantic Coast shows outstandingly high rates. Urban expansion has substantially squeezed the space of tidal flats and affected surrounding environments. In new urban areas, tidal flats have undergone considerable degeneration with more significant patterns as they get closer to new urban locations. Tidal flats protect against the ocean’s destructive powers such as hurricanes. Without some inland spaces to move around, they will likely disappear, which will have dire consequences for beachfront communities.

Curbing waste improves global food security but has limited environmental benefits

Reducing waste is one way to help combat hunger around the world, but stricter control over food loss and waste does not lead to better environmental outcomes, according to researchers at the University of California, Irvine and the University of Colorado Boulder. In a paper published recently in Nature Food, the scientists stress that curbing food spoilage increases the amount of produce in markets, which leads to lower costs.

Canadian wildfires and air quality: MSU experts can comment on public health, climate change impacts, pets and wildlife

Contact:  Emilie Lorditch, University Communications, [email protected]; Nardy Baeza Bickel, MSU Health Sciences: [email protected]; EAST LANSING, Mich. – Wildfires in Canada are creating hazy skies and prompting air quality concerns from the Midwest to the East Coast of the United States. Michigan…

Boom! Detecting Gregarious Goliath Groupers Using Their Low-frequency Pulse Sounds

From growls to booms, whales, fish and crustaceans all produce sounds. Selecting the gregarious Goliath grouper, researchers deployed a novel automated detector and localization model to find underwater marine organisms using their low-frequency pulse sounds.

UC Irvine receives grant to study lead exposure effects on children’s learning, behavior

The Program in Public Health at the University of California, Irvine has received a five-year, $2.7 million grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to research the connection between low-level lead exposure during pregnancy and early childhood and children’s school performance and behavior in Santa Ana, California.

Human-caused climate change to blame for increase in California’s wildfires

In the quarter century between 1996 and 2020, wildfires in California consumed five times more area than they did from 1971 to 1995. Researchers at the University of California and other international institutions have concluded that nearly all of the increase in scorched terrain can be blamed on human-caused climate change.

Chula’s Department of Nuclear Engineering Offers In-depth Radiation Measurement and Explains the Dangers Associated with Caesium-137

Lecturers of the Department of Nuclear Engineering, Chulalongkorn University have found no contamination or spreading of Caesium-137 to the environment in the area of Prachin Buri Province as reported in the news. The Department aims to provide academic services and radiation measurements by a team of experts with in-depth measurement equipment.

Susan and Henry Samueli give $50 million to UC Irvine’s engineering school

The creation of three new multidisciplinary research institutes in The Henry Samueli School of Engineering is being made possible by a $50 million gift from Susan and Henry Samueli to the University of California, Irvine. Unified under the banner “Engineering+,” the Engineering+Health Institute, Engineering+Society Institute and Engineering+Environment Institute will allow researchers from diverse disciplines to conduct transformational research addressing the most important issues facing humanity today.

Crushed Clams, Roaming Rays: Acoustic Tags Reveal Predator Interactions

Inspired by clam fishermen reports, researchers used passive acoustic telemetry to gauge the interactions between two highly mobile rays. They monitored the tagged rays in the wild over two years to see how often and when they visited clam leases. Results provide both good news and bad news for clammers. Rays spent even more time in these clam lease sites than clammers reported or suspected, but it’s not necessarily where they prefer hanging out.

Smartphone Use Goes Up in City Parks, But Down in Forests

New research shows that smartphone activity actually increases during visits outdoors to city parks—a finding that contradicts popular notions. Thanks to two years of unparalleled access to 700 study participants’ smartphone data, the study is the first to show that young adults now spend far more time on their smartphone screens than in nature. The study finds that people who visit forests or nature preserves experience significant declines in screen time, compared to visits to urban locations for the same duration.

GW Experts: EPA Announces its Proposal Limiting Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Power Plants

WASHINGTON (May 11, 2023) –  The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing today new limits on greenhouse gas emissions from coal- and gas-fired power plants. According to the Associated Press, it’s the most ambitious effort yet to roll back planet-warming pollution.   GW faculty…

FAU, Virtual Planet and City of West Palm Beach Unveil Groundbreaking Virtual Reality Experience

The multidisciplinary team created a virtual simulation of the devastation that a Category 5 hurricane and sea level rise could have on West Palm Beach. The simulation, produced with 3D technology, reveals the destruction that could occur in Osprey Park and the surrounding communities, highlighting the threat to the coastline and potential solutions for coastal areas.

GW Expert Available to Discuss Youth Climate Activism During Earth Week

This week, people across the globe are organizing events around sustainability, green living and climate change to mark the annual celebration of Earth Day. Often leading the charge is young people, who one faculty expert at the George Washington University…